Folding chair



March 31, 1931. I H sMlTH 1,799,029

' FOLDING CHAIR Filed May 12} 1930 INVENTOB liHSmnt/z,

ATTORNEY Patented Mar. 31, 1 931 UNITED STAT-ES BENJAMIN H. SMITH, OF NILES, MICHIGAN FOLDING CHAIR Application filed ma 12, 1930. Serial No. 451,818.

This invention relates to folding chairs and seats, and is more particularly concerned provision of a folding skeleton chair or seat frame having opposed frame portions be 1 tween which a fabric filler is inserted, at least one of these frame portions providing bars in. spaced, substantially parallel relation over which the end of the fabric filler is wrapped andbetween which it extends and is clamped, the bars being enclosed and covered by the fabric.

From another aspect, a further object of the invention consists in the provision of a skeleton chair or seat frame having means for detachably engaging, and clamping fabric fillers connecting opposite frame portions without the necessity of sewing or the use of additional fasteningmeans. Such a construction permits removal of fabric fillers for laundering, dry cleaning or substitution of new material and facilitates the replace-- ment of the filler thereon.

The described and other objects andfeatures will be more clearly apparent from'the following detailed specification which is to be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings forming part thereof and in which Figure 1 is a perspective detail of a folding chair of metal skeleton frame work having the seat and back portions provided by fabric fillers connected to opposite frame portions in accordance with a feature of the invention;

Figure 2 is a transverse vertical section through the arm rest and seat portion of the chair shown in Figure 1.

Figure 3 is atransverse horizontal section through the back rest portiontaken on the line 33 of Figure 2.

V Figure "4: is a transverse section on anenlarged scale illustrating the method of inserting and clamping the end of the fabric filler between the parallel bars of the frame.

Figure 5 is a vertical section on an enlarged scale through the complemental bars at one side of the seat portion of the frame illustrating the manner of insertingand clamping the end of the fabric filler therein.

As above indicated, chairs or seats of the type involved herein are of the. skeleton frame work type. As shown pairs of metal yokes 1 of strap steelforming inverted 'Us are arranged in overlapping relation and pivotally connected forming pairs of spaced pivoted cross links and constituting-the legs :of the chair frame and their lower ends are offset at 2 to lie ,ina vertical plane and are cross braced by short yokestraps 3 whose offset lower endsaline with the offset ends 2 of the yokes and are rigidly connected thereto as by welding or bolting as desired, the joined lower ends constituting feet portions and being encased in protective tips 4 of rubber or other suitable material to: prevent injury to the floor, forexample.

The sides and back of the skeleton frame are provided by spaced front and rear straps having vertically extending portions 5 and 6', respectively,provided with offset lower ends 7 riveted to the upper ends of the sides 7 of the yokes 1 at opposite sides of'the frame,

the frontbars' 5' being bent downwardly at right angles to' provide arm rest portions 8 and extend rearwardly to join the upper ends of the rear bars 6, thesebar's'being thence ex tended upwardly in spaced parallel relation as inclined bars 5a 6a as seen at 9' (Figure ,1) with their upper endsjoined at;10, (Figure 1). fOonveniently, the front and rear bars 5 and 6 at eachside of the chair frame maybe formed of af single, piece of strap imetal bent to the form shown so that the upper ends 10 will be integrally joined," although it is feasible to form them in two por 'tions'united welding-or riveting as may be deemed expedient in manufacture. The spaced backbar portions of the front and 'rear bars '5and'6 at each side of the frame will be inclined at the proper angle for the support of the back and are spaced to permit the insertion therebetween of a thickness of heavy fabric, such as duck or similar material.

In mounting a fabric filler 11 forming the back of the chair, its ends are brought over the front face of the bars 5a and thence over the side edges of bars 5a, 6a; over the back of bars 6a and are thence extended in between the bars 5a, 6a and brought over the front face of the bar 6a in back of the main body of the fabric filler 11 as clearly shown in detail in Figure 4. No other fastening means is necessary, as it will be obvious as pressure against the fabric filler 11 through the pressure of the back of the person occupying the chair tends to increase the clamping grip afforded by the threading of the end of the fabric between the spaced bar portions and over the front bar portion so that the greater the pressure applied, the greater the grip afforded. Such a construction is highly advantageous in its saving of labor through stitching, or by material and labor through the need of additional fastening means in its application. It is further advantageous in that the fabric filler may be readily removed for laundering, dry cleaning or replacement, and may be easily replaced by the owner without requiring the use of stitching or other extraneous means.

The same advantageous fastening means for the end of the fabric filler 12 constituting the seat portion of the chair is afforded by providing short clamping yokes extended between the front and rear side of the yokes 1 at their upper ends with their downwardly extending arms 13 pivoted at their lower end to the opposite downwardly extending arms of the yokes 1 and with their upper ends pre senting bars 1 1 spaced from and in substantially parallel relation to the horizontal bars 15 (Figure constituting the upper ends of the yokes 1 and forming with the bars 14, the opposite sides of the frame at the seat portion of the chair. The pivoting pivot for the lower ends of these yokes is utilized, conveniently to secure the lower offset ends f the bars 5 and 6 to the upper ends of the yokes. The opposite ends of the filler 12 are brought over the top face of the bar portion 15 thence downwardly over the outside edges of the bars 15 and 16 and under the bar 14 from whence it is inserted between the bars 14 and 15 and over the top face of the bar 15, under the main body of the fabric filler 12, being thus effectively clamped to these bar portions by the pressure exerted upon the fabric through the Weight of the person occupying theseat, the effectiveness of the clamping action increasing with the pressure applied to the limit of the strength of the fabric itself. As a matter of practice,

the arm rest portions 8 are provided with surmounting plates 16 which may be of wood,

illustrative rather than restrictive of the invention and may be modified and varied to suit different conditions in consonance with the spirit of the invention and the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A chair frame having at opposite sides of its seat portion spaced pairs of frame bars, one of the bars of each pair being hinged to the chair frame for swinging movement into and from determinately spaced parallel relation to the other, and a loose fabric seat spanning said pairs of bars with its ends looped over each of said pairs and threaded therebetween and thereover to underlie and be retained by the fabric initially looping over its pair of bars, the hinged member of each pair being moved into the aforesaid parallel relation subsequently to the threading operation, and the weight of the seat occupant serving to press the overlying fabric into tight clamping engagement with the underlying fabric ends.

2. A chair frame having opposite side frame members formed as pairs of parallel flat faced bars, fixedly spaced in the direction of their thickness, and a fabric filler spanning the space between said side frame members with its ends initially looped over the opposite non-confronting faces of each pair of bars and thence threaded between the :1;-

spaced bars and over the face of the first bar covered by said initial loop to underlle and be clamped thereby against said face through against said fabric filler.

BENJAMIN H. SMITH. 

